About Corporate Areas

	United States	Canada
Group Name	Corporate Areas
Known to customers as…	Harris ®	BMO Financial Group®†
Number of employees	Approx. 2000 combined
Principal Locations	Chicago	Toronto; smaller groups in Vancouver, Edmonton, Montreal and other urban centers
What do we do?	We are comprised of a number of groups that provide the strategic  support necessary for the operation of our customer-facing businesses. The Corporate Areas have functions across several disciplines and work collaboratively across the entire organization. We provide professional services in strategic management, marketing, risk management, finance, legal, compliance, communications, audit and human resources.
What makes this group a great place to work?	We help drive BMO’s®† culture and results. Working in Corporate Areas puts you at the center of delivering BMO’s business strategies, financial results and reporting, Human Resources policies and programs and other important drivers of our success. We enjoy great working relationships. We work closely with colleagues throughout the organization, and enjoy the satisfaction of building strong internal relationships. We are personally and professionally diverse. Our colleagues come from around the world, with a wide variety of personal and professional backgrounds, varied academic credentials and diverse work histories. We often work in multi-disciplinary teams that allow us to interact with and learn from individuals from across the organization. We understand and value the importance of diversity and inclusion. Our commitment to diversity is evident in the way we work, the solutions we offer, the environment that we provide and in the way we partner with others.
Note: Harris is a member of BMO Financial Group. In the United States, BMO offers customers personal banking, business banking and wealth management services under the brand name “Harris.” To learn about Corporate Areas careers in Canada, please visit the BMO Financial Group careers site.

Learn more about:

• Groups within Corporate Areas
• Common roles
• Sample intake and training programs
• What it's like to work here?
• Opportunities for students and recent graduates

Groups within Corporate Areas

Corporate Areas is comprised of Enterprise Risk & Portfolio Management, Corporate Communications, General Legal Counsel & Taxation, Finance, Investor Relations, Finance & Treasurer, Office of Strategic Management, Human Resources, Corporate Audit, Corporate Marketing and Community Affairs (U.S.).  

Enterprise Risk & Portfolio Management is a group of approximately 800 risk professionals who ensure that BMO is an industry leader in risk management. They are responsible for policy setting, reporting, risk oversight, transactional management, portfolio management and education.

Corporate Communications sets overall communications strategy and provides strategic advice and counsel for internal clients; sets guidelines and standards for communications across the organization; and manages the timing of all corporate announcements.

General Legal Counsel & Taxation manages legal risk and provision of legal services, oversight of domestic and international tax, corporate secretarial functions, corporate security and corporate compliance.  

Finance prepares, analyses and disseminates information on financial performance.

Investor Relations acts as relationship managers to the investor community.

Finance and Treasurer is responsible for mergers and acquisitions, financial strategy, asset liability management, balance sheet funding and liquidity and capital management.

Office of Strategic Management guides the development and implementation of strategies throughout the organization. This group defines goals, draws blueprints and determines measurable outcomes for developing and implementing superior strategies to maximize shareholder value. The three main areas of practice within the Office of Strategic Management are: Strategy, Performance Delivery and Strategic & Business Research.

Human Resources forges the link between strategy, people and performance, enabling BMO to execute our customer-focused business strategies.

• The HR Standards and Services Teams are centralized HR groups, developing overall HR architecture and providing strategies and frameworks that ensure BMO meets its people management objectives.
• The HR Business Partners perform HR functions within each Business Group, providing strategic human resources insight in areas such as performance management, organization design, leadership, HR planning and staffing and workplace equity.

Corporate Audit conducts independent, periodic, objective audits of the effectiveness of internal control of all branches, departments, units, strategies and initiatives. This group also reviews the results of independent audits of equity investees, joint ventures and material outsourcing arrangements.

Corporate Marketing is responsible for developing and managing a coordinated brand strategy including BMO & Harris' advertising, corporate sponsorships and special events strategies. It is also responsible for market research, as well as the governance and coordination of our e-business and merchandising functions. Corporate Marketing works with our other Business Groups to increase our share of wallet, and continue to build equity in the BMO brand in Canada and the Harris brand in the United States.

Community Affairs (U.S.) provides Harris employees with the means and knowledge they need to engage in endeavors that make a difference in the community. We do this through programs such as Matching Gifts (Harris will match employee contributions to qualifying not-for-profit organizations), corporate partnerships with local cultural institutions and our support of United Way. This group’s mission is to enhance Harris’ image and strengthen our communities through building relationships that focus primarily on financial education and community development.

Back to Learn More

Common Roles

• Analyst
• Manager
• Senior Manager
• Director

To search our database of current vacancies, please visit our job search page.

Back to Learn More

Sample Intake & Training Programs

We offer a wide variety of opportunities for our employees to learn and grow. Check out our Commitment to Learning section to see how we’re investing in our employees’ development.

Within Corporate Areas, here are a few examples of programs designed to help our employees reach their highest level of performance:

Managerial Leadership Learning System (MLLS)

• Designed to help managers be the best manager/leader they can be, this program combines the practicalities of daily management in balance with the forward thinking required for strong leadership. Two streams are offered depending on the individual’s prior experience with managing others.
• The Foundations of Managerial Leadership stream spans 12 months and is designed for those who are new to the role of managing people.
• The General Manager/Leader stream, also 12 months, is geared for those who are more seasoned managers.

Human Resources Professional Development Curriculum

• Designed to meet the learning needs of Human Resources professionals seeking to enhance their capability in an evolving business environment. Two program paths are offered to strengthen HR professionals’ capabilities:
• The HR Fundamentals program provides HR colleagues with a strong foundation in all areas of Human Resources expertise. This program path focuses on HR strategies within BMO and current, progressive practices in the field of Human Resources.
• The Business Analytics and Decisioning program develops a strong capability for HR professionals to make strategic assessments and decisions, enabling HR professionals to manage the link between high performance and maintaining BMO’s standing as an employer of choice.

Back to Learn More

What it's like to work here?

Culture

• Corporate Areas represents a diverse collection of corporate professionals who are united in providing strategic and operational support in the various professional disciplines. Across all groups the culture is supportive and high performing, and inspires success and commitment.
• We take our commitment to professional development very seriously, whether it is supporting Finance and Audit professionals in designation-required training hours, assisting Human Resources Professionals to complete an HR designation (e.g. SPHR, PHR, GPHR) or supporting an employee pursuing further education such as an MBA.

Work Norms

• Formality/Informality: Corporate Areas maintains a professional office environment, with some groups being more formal than others.   
• Hours: Work hours are generally normal office hours, however hours and volumes vary based primarily on our partner demands and where we are within the annual business cycle.

Employee Recognition Programs*

• Many areas institute employee recognition programs that acknowledge and reward employees for contributions that are reflective of their respective business groups. For example, Human Resources has a longstanding HR Stars Program which allows colleagues to recognize a co-worker who has proactively demonstrated the Bank's values of working collaboratively, making things happen, leading us higher and delivering results.

* may not apply in all sub-groups

Back to Learn More
Back to top


Harris N.A. is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

® Registered trademark of Harris N.A., used by Harris N.A. and its affiliates. Harris is a member of BMO Financial Group.
®† Registered trademark of Bank of Montreal.